Touch-to-fasten coconut fiber roofing

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a touch-to-fastener roofing structure made of coconut fibers, includes: main boards, a support frame arranged below the main boards, a bonding strap arranged on a joint between the main boards. The main board includes an upper touch fastener and a lower touch fastener. The lower touch fastener of the main board engages an upper touch fastener provided on the support frame to fix the main board to the support frame. The upper touch fastener of the main board engages a lower touch fastener provided on the bonding strap to have the joint between the main boards sealed by the bonding strap. The main board includes upper and lower coconut fiber boards, an adhesive plastic film interposed between the two fiber boards for bonding the two fiber boards together, and a main board edge bonding strap fixing exposed edges of the two fiber boards and the film.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates generally to a roofing structure, and in particular to a touch-to-fastener coconut-fiber-made roofing structure for outdoor applications.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART

An outdoor shed is often made of concrete, plastic/canvas sheets, or metallic materials, such as steel and aluminum.

Such materials themselves are not beautiful. If they are used to construct a roof of for example an outer pavilion, the overall configuration of the construction may become unsynchronized with the surrounding natural environment. Further, a roofing structure formed by a single layer of plastic/canvas sheet or a metal plate roofing structure has the features of fast heat transfer and poor air ventilation. Thus, in a high temperature summer daytime, heat is quickly transferred to the space sheltered under the roofing, making the sheltering effect poor.

Further, besides using concrete to construct, the conventional sheds also need certain fastening/assembling mechanism to connect to a support frame below the roofing. For example, a metal roof is often fixed to the support frame by bolts; a plastic roof is fixed to the support frame by suitable fasteners. These arrangements make installation and removal difficult, and further, since a roofing structure is often set an elevated location, which makes the installation and removal of the roofing even more difficult.

Thus, it is desired to have an outdoor roofing structure that offers excellent rain protection and thermal insulation and also provides an effect of beautification, and that is easy to install and remove.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above problems, an objective of the present invention is to provide a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that offers excellent thermal insulation.

Another objective of the present invention is to provide a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that beautifies the surrounding environment.

A further objective of the present invention is to provide a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that offers excellent capability of water drainage.

A further objective of the present invention is to provide a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that prevents water penetration.

Yet a further objective of the present invention is to provide a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that can be installed and removed without any tool and additional parts.

To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides a touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure that comprises a main board, a first touch fastener provided on a surface of the main board, a support frame, a second touch fastener provided on the support frame and corresponding to and engageable with the first touch fastener, wherein the main board is bonded to the support frame by the engagement between the first and second touch fasteners. The main board comprises a first coconut fiber board, a second coconut fiber board, a plastic film interposed between the first and second coconut fiber boards for fixing the first and second coconut fiber boards together, and a main board edge bonding strap mounted to exposed edges of the first and second coconut fiber boards and the film for bonding the first and second coconut fiber boards and the film together so as to allow an amount of air to exist between the first and second coconut fiber boards.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the film has a surface facing at least one of the first and second coconut fiber boards and the surface forms a plurality of projections, which is uniformly distributed on the surface of the film.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first and second coconut fiber boards are formed by weaving coconut fibers with non-woven fabric weaving techniques.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the film is made of an adhesive material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the film is made of an adhesive material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the film is made of a non-water permeable material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the main board edge bonding strap is made of a non-water permeable material.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the touch-to-fasten coconut-fiber-made roofing structure comprises more than one main board, which comprises a third touch fastener on a surface thereof opposite to the first touch fastener. The third fastener may be set on an edge of the main board that is adjacent to a next main board. The touch-to-fasten roofing structure further comprises a bonding strap that comprises a fourth touch fastener corresponding to and engageable with the third touch fastener. The bonding strap connects between adjacent main boards by engagement between the third and fourth touch fasteners, whereby the roofing structure is made more sound and firm.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first, second, third, and fourth touch fasteners are members of loop-and-hook fasteners, which are easy to mount and/or dismount.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the roofing structure includes a vehicle shed, a pavilion, or a rain shade.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a material for making the main board is selected from a group consisting of coconut fiber, plastics, metals, and a combination thereof.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the main board has a polygonal shape, including rectangle, square, and triangle.

The foregoing objective and summary provide only a brief introduction to the present invention. To fully appreciate these and other objects of the present invention as well as the invention itself, all of which will become apparent to those skilled in the art, the following detailed description of the invention and the claims should be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Throughout the specification and drawings identical reference numerals refer to identical or similar parts.

Many other advantages and features of the present invention will become manifest to those versed in the art upon making reference to the detailed description and the accompanying sheets of drawings in which a preferred structural embodiment incorporating the principles of the present invention is shown by way of illustrative example.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a touch-to-fasten coconut fiber roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a portion of a vehicle shed to which a touch-to-fasten coconut fiber roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is mounted to.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a vehicle shed in which a touch-to-fasten coconut fiber roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is embodied.

FIG. 4 is a schematic view illustrating construction details of the coconut fiber roofing structure in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The following descriptions are exemplary embodiments only, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the following description provides a convenient illustration for implementing exemplary embodiments of the invention. Various changes to the described embodiments may be made in the function and arrangement of the elements described without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

The present invention provides a touch-to-fasten roofing structure that is made of coconut fibers. FIG. 1 of the attached drawings shows a schematic cross-sectional view of the touch-to-fasten roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The touch-to-fasten roofing structure of the present invention is applicable to an outdoor shed, such as a vehicle shed, a rain shade, or a pavilion, but is not limited thereto. FIG. 1 shows a roofing structure 1 that comprises two main boards 10, a support frame 20 arranged below the main boards 10 and a bonding strap 30 arranged above the main boards 10. Coupling between the main boards 10 and the support frame 20 and the bonding strap 30 will be described.

To have the main boards coupled to the support frame below and to have the bonding strap attached to the main boards, each main board 10 is comprised of an upper touch fastener 10A, a lower touch fastener 10B and a main material portion 10C. The touch fastener can be a hook-and-loop fastener or other fasteners having similar function of being detachable when subjected to a peeling force. The main material portion constitutes the primary material of the roofing and can be for example plastics, metals, coconut fibers or any combination of the above materials. The main material portion will be further described.

The support frame 20 comprises an upper touch fastener 20A, which corresponds to and mates with the lower touch fastener 10B of the main board 10. For example, when the upper touch fastener 20A is a hook member of a hook-and-loop fastener, the lower touch fastener 10B is a loop member of the hook-and-loop fastener. Or, alternatively, the upper touch fastener 20A is a loop member, while the lower touch fastener 10B is a hook member. The support frame 20 is a beam frame (see FIG. 2) of a for example a shed that is mounted to top ends of columns or posts to form a construction of for example a vehicle shed or a pavilion. The main board 10 can thus be fixed to the support frame 20 through the coupling between the fasteners 10B, 20A and a peeling force applied to the main board can easily separate the main board from the support frame. Apparently, the roofing structure of the present invention can be easily installed and dismounted without any tools and additional parts required for assembling.

As shown in FIG. 1, the bonding strap 30 comprises a lower touch fastener 30B (such as a loop member or a hook member of a hook-and-loop fastener) corresponding to and mating with the upper touch fastener 10A (such as a hook member or a loop member of the hook-and-loop fastener) of the main board 10, which functions to bond the joint between the two main boards 10 for fixing the two main boards together to further strengthen the overall structure and for preventing rain water from leaking through the joint between the main boards. In this respect, the upper touch fastener 10A of each main board 10 can be provided only at an edge that is to be jointed to another main board 10.

FIG. 2 shows an exploded view of a portion of a vehicle shed to which a touch-to-fasten roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is mounted to. In the instant embodiment, the touch-to-fasten roofing can be structured as that shown in FIG. 1. As shown in FIG. 2, to mount the roofing, a plurality of main boards 10 is directly laid on a support frame 20. Since mateable touch fasteners are provided on the main boards 10 and the support frame 20, the main boards 10 can be conveniently fastened to the support frame 20. Thereafter, a bonding strap 30 (not shown in FIG. 2) is positioned on the joint between adjacent main boards to hide the jointing gap between the main boards. Particularly, six main boards are shown in FIG. 2, and four of the six main boards have upper touch fasteners (not shown in FIG. 2) set on opposite edges thereof, while two remaining two main boards that are located at opposite ends of the roofing only have upper touch fasteners (not shown in FIG. 2) set on the edges adjacent tot the joints thereof with other main boards. In the instant embodiment, five bonding straps 30 are included, respectively set on the joints between adjacent main boards. FIG. 3 shows a finished vehicle shed after the assembling of the roofing is completed.

Those having ordinary skills can appreciate that although the above discussed preferred embodiment of the present invention uses only two main boards to form a roofing structure, yet it is possible to use only a single piece of the main board or more than two main boards to make the roofing, as demonstrated in FIGS. 2 and 3. In case that only one main board is included in the roofing structure, there will be no need to bond separate main boards and thus the bonding strap 30 and the upper touch fastener 10A of the main board can be eliminated.

In addition, although the main boards are shown to be rectangular in the preferred embodiment discussed, it is apparent that the main boards can be made any other shapes, such as square and triangle, or other polygons and the present invention is not limited to the specific shapes discussed.

In the following, the main material portion 10C of the main board 10 will be described with reference to FIG. 4.

The present invention uses natural coconut fibers as a primary material for constructing the roofing and is particularly suitable for an outdoor pavilion, a vehicle shed, or a rain shade.

Referring to FIG. 4, a schematic view of construction details of a main material portion 10C of a main board 10 in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. As shown in FIG. 4, the main material portion 10C in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises an upper coconut fiber board 101, a lower coconut fiber board 102, a plastic film 103 interposed between the upper and lower coconut fiber boards, and a main board edge bonding strap 104.

The upper and lower coconut fiber boards 101, 102 can be formed by weaving or braiding together, for example using the weaving techniques for making non-woven fabrics, to form a sheet/board or other configurations. The present invention, however, is not limited to such weaving techniques and other weaving or braiding techniques or the likes known to those having ordinary skills can be applied. The upper and lower coconut fiber boards 101, 102 are fixed together by the plastic film 103 that has an adhesion capability, such as being bonded together through a hot pressing process. The plastic film 103 can be made of any suitable adhesive materials that provide the bonding effect. In another embodiment, the plastic film 103 is made of a water-proof material. In a further embodiment, the film 103 is made of a material having an excellent strength and being not easy to break.

As shown in the drawings, the film 103 forms a plurality of bosses or projections 131 on surfaces thereof that interface the upper coconut fiber board 101 and the lower coconut fiber board 102. Preferably, the bosses or projections are uniformly distributed. The bosses or projections function to provide an increased space between the film and the coconut fiber boards for realizing thermal insulation.

It is noted that the bosses or projections can, alternatively, be formed on only one surface of the film 103 that faces the upper coconut fiber board 101 or that faces the lower coconut fiber board 102. In other words, it is not necessary to provide the bosses or projections on both surfaces of the film.

Since the two coconut fiber boards are attached to the intermediately arranged film 103, the two coconut fiber boards are not in direct connection with each other. As illustrated in FIG. 4, exposed edges of the coconut fiber boards, as well as a corresponding edge of the film 103, are fixed together by the main board edge bonding strap 104, such as by sewing or other jointing techniques. A suitable material for the main board edge bonding strap 104 is a nylon fabric, for example. Since a water-proof plastic film is interposed between the coconut fiber boards and since the edges of the boards are bonded by the main board edge bonding strap 104, no water can penetrate to an underside of the roofing structure. Further, the coconut fiber is helpful in draining water. Thus, features of preventing water penetration and being easy dried are provided.

Further, using the plastic film that has bosses or projections 131 to fix the coconut fiber boards and the main board edge bonding strap to bond the boards allow an amount of air to exist between the two coconut fiber boards, whereby thermal insulation capability is better than a single plastic/canvas layer made roofing structure or a single steel plate made roofing structure. Also, due to such a double layered structure, the overall roofing construction is not easy to deform and is durable against weathering, such as winds and sun light.

It is known from the above description that the coconut fiber roofing structure in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention employs a double-layered coconut fiber board structure to realize thermal insulation, protection against water penetration, and being not easy to deform. Further, using coconut fibers as a construction material is natural and environmentally conservative and provides excellent water drainage capability. Further, the natural coconut fibers help roots of climber plants to fix thereto to thereby make the overall configuration of the roofing natural and beautiful. Further, the coconut fibers have excellent water drainage capability so that it is not easy to maintain wet that breeds microorganisms and insects.

The drawings are provided for schematically illustrating examples of the present invention, and are not made to scale. For example, compared to the overall size of the main board 10, the upper touch fastener 10A and/or the bonding strap 30 is shown in an exaggerated or shrunk ratio with respect to the main board 10 itself. The actual sizes of these components can be any desired values and the present invention is not limited to any specific figures.

While certain novel features of this invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claim, it is not intended to be limited to the details above, since it will be understood that various omissions, modifications, substitutions and changes in the forms and details of the device illustrated and in its operation can be made by those skilled in the art without departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. 

1. A coconut fiber made roofing structure, comprising: a main board, which comprises: a first coconut fiber board; a second coconut fiber board; a plastic film interposed between the first and second coconut fiber boards for bonding the first and second coconut fiber boards together; and a main board edge bonding strap arranged at corresponding edges of the first and second coconut fiber boards and the film for fixing the first and second coconut fiber boards and the film together, a first touch fastener provided on a surface of the main board; a support frame; and a second touch fastener provided on the support frame to correspond to the first touch fastener, wherein the main board is bonded to the support frame by the corresponding first and second touch fasteners.
 2. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the film has a surface facing at least one of the first and second coconut fiber boards, said surface forming a plurality of projections.
 3. The roofing structure according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of projections is uniformly distributed on the surface.
 4. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the first and second coconut fiber boards are formed by weaving coconut fibers with non-woven fabric weaving techniques.
 5. The roofing structure according to claim 2, wherein the first and second coconut fiber boards are formed by weaving coconut fibers with non-woven fabric weaving techniques.
 6. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the film is made of a high-strength material.
 7. The roofing structure according to claim 2, wherein the film is made of a high-strength material.
 8. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the film is made of a non-water permeable material.
 9. The roofing structure according to claim 2, wherein the film is made of a non-water permeable material.
 10. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the main board edge bonding strap is made of a non-water permeable material.
 11. The roofing structure according to claim 2, wherein the main board edge bonding strap is made of a non-water permeable material.
 12. The roofing structure according to claim 1 further comprising a plurality of main boards.
 13. The roofing structure according to claim 12, wherein the plurality of main boards each comprises a third touch fastener on a surface thereof opposite to the first touch fastener.
 14. The roofing structure according to claim 12, wherein the third fastener is set on an edge of the main board that is adjacent to a next main board.
 15. The roofing structure according to claim 13 further comprising a bonding strap that comprises a fourth touch fastener corresponding to and mateable with the third touch fastener, the bonding strap connecting between adjacent main boards by mating the third and fourth touch fasteners.
 16. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the first and second touch fasteners are members of loop-and-hook fasteners.
 17. The roofing structure according to claim 15, wherein the first, second, third, and fourth touch fasteners are members of loop-and-hook fasteners.
 18. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the roofing structure comprises a vehicle shed, a pavilion, or a rain shade.
 19. The roofing structure according to claim 15, wherein the roofing structure comprises a vehicle shed, a pavilion, or a rain shade.
 20. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein a material for making the main board is selected from a group consisting of coconut fiber, plastics, metals, and a combination thereof.
 21. The roofing structure according to claim 15, wherein a material for making the main board is selected from a group consisting of coconut fiber, plastics, metals, and a combination thereof.
 22. The roofing structure according to claim 1, wherein the main board has a polygonal shape.
 23. The roofing structure according to claim 15, wherein the main board has a polygonal shape. 